Associates

Moving the Centre

Moving the Center, is an curatorial attemt to begin a decentralising process from the urban, cosmopolitan centric contemporary art, and to open up questions regarding languge in the making of visual arts. Folk Art in India has only recently being acknowledged as an intrinsic part of contemporary expression and the standing of folk+tribal art as a frozen tradition. It is true that some masters have been recognised as extra ordinary sculptors or painters, yet we treat contemporary art and folk+tribal art as two different streams. One of the agendas for MATI India is to rework this polarised relationship. It is not just because aeroplanes entered Madhubani Paintings fifteen years ago, but also because contemporary art rural India is bursting with creative and technical brilliance and is definitely a part of our contemporary viewing culture. Moving the Center is a show celebrating this breaking of boundaries, showcasing some of the best modernist and contemporary folk+tribal art.

Moving the Center, will seek to begin a journey towards fulfilling MATI’s goal to do away with the work folk itself, and establish a history of contemporary art from rural and tribal India.The show is curated by Siddhartha Tagore and Rahul Bhattacharya which will feature some of the best of contemporary folk and tribal art of India comprising master artists like Jangarh Singh Shyam, Kaushal Prasad and Jaidev Baghel, Jivya Soma Mashe, Baua Devi as well as important talents like Venkat Raman Singh, Rajendra Kumar Shayam, Govind Yogi, Rambharos Jha, Montu Chitrakar, Narmada Prasad Tekam. The exhibition will bring together contemporary painting traditions from Saura, Gond, Warli, and large scale stunning sculptures from Bastar. The narrative scroll painting tradition will be showcased through Pichwais, Pata Chitras, Raghurajpur, Santhal and Bengal scrolls along with masks from Bastar, Bengal, and the Bodo region. Many of these artworks have a history of ritualistic contexts, but have now become an integral part of contemporary visual culture. We need to arrive at a space where these works occupy different languages within the spectrum of contemporary.The proceeds from the fundraiser will go towards seeding the contemporary folk and tribal art archive, funding short term research projects and the MATI residencies at Puri.The price range for the show is INR. 10,000/- to INR. 6,50000.